WhatsApp rolls out optional parental controls for teen users
Popular messaging platform WhatsApp has introduced new parental controls to monitor and protect teen users. The move comes amid growing pressure on tech firms to improve safety for children online.
The new tools will allow parents to see when their children join or leave a group chat. Parents will also be able to adjust their children’s privacy settings. However, messages and calls will still be private and fully protected by end-to-end encryption.
In addition, parents will be able to decide who is allowed to view a teenager’s profile photo and who can add them to groups. The app’s public broadcast feature, Channels, will also offer parental controls.
When it comes to the app’s new built-in Meta AI assistant, parents can choose whether to apply the default 13+ setting or a stricter mode known as “Limited Content”.
The app’s parental control system will be built around a PIN set by parents, which teens will need to know if they want to make any adjustments to the settings themselves.
Although some parents welcome the move, others feel it doesn’t go far enough. Social media analyst Matt Navarra noted that the optional nature of the controls makes them an “obvious weakness” in the system as not all families will know they exist or how to enable them.
The update comes as the UK government moves forward with its plans to ban users under 16 from social media. The broader restrictions are expected to take effect in March 2027.